Ladies and gentlemen, All Points East returned this weekend, after a stonking first installment from the 16-18 August which included performances from Kaytranada, Loyle Carner and Mitski.
Festival-wise, APE has never been better. The headliners received rave reviews, the production runs like a well-oiled machine, the crowds are dressed up and ready to party.
But there’s just one problem: the Gen Z teens. Now finally at the age to legally infiltrate festivals, they are gradually becoming our gig and partying peers. And they really, truly, absolutely suck.
After the third day of All Points East last weekend, during which Mitski was set to headline, a TikTok of two young girls watching Netflix at the barrier of the main stage while sitting down eating burgers went viral.
@ruruthefool like i get they paid for vip too but if you aren't going to tune in then let someone else take the front? managed to get the barricade for bee n mitski tho 🙏🏾 #fyp #festival #allpointseast #music #concert
♬ suara asli - Vin.AI93 - Vin.AI93
Mitski has a large fanbase of teenage fans, something which may be connected to her song My Love Mine All Mine going viral on TikTok last year.
“These girlies were just watching Netflix with earbuds during like three sets,” it was captioned, showing the girls sat down and streaming while Ethel Cain played live on the stage in front of them.
“[Doing this] during Ethel Cain is criminal,” said one comment. “Concert etiquette has gone since Covid, it’s so unreal,” said another.
When the conversation moved to X, someone added: “I believe that part of the fun and culture of festivals is discovering new music you wouldn’t usually see BUT if you don’t subscribe to that belief and really want to pay all that money to sit at the barrier for one act all day AT LEAST respect the artist on stage. Gross!”
Will, a writer who was present at the same day of All Points East, says the bizarre behaviour of the Gen Z youth didn’t stop there. “It was definitely the youngest crowd I'd seen at APE having been a few times,” he says. “What I found odd was how there was an absolute stampede when anyone began their set. And then when the band had played one or two [songs], they deserted in mass droves and ran to the other side of the park.
“The other thing was that a few of them would not just sing along to their favourite songs but would ask their mate to record them singing it. They would have their back to the stage and be looking at the camera while singing along. Had never seen that before.”
In fact, the behaviour got so annoying at one point that it actually caused the headliner to stop her set mid-way through. “Mitski stopped her set because a girl started shouting ‘brat green’ over and over in between songs,” Will says. “She couldn't hear her and it took forever to work out. I think everyone was annoyed.”
Perhaps we should have known they’d be unbearable. We’ve seen plenty of this behaviour from teens in the past few years.
From militant, teen-policed queuing systems in place for artists like The 1975 (you get there a day early, a teenage girl gives you a number, that’s your place in the queue, then you cannot leave the queue until doors open) to projectiles being thrown at artists for the sake of TikTok videos, it’s getting pretty dire out here.
But it’s taken until now for the older, or even immediately above, generations to have to witness this misbehaviour in such close confines.
The kids are not alright: they’re unsocialised, largely due to living through multiple lockdowns and school closures and spending more time on their phones than was ever normal or healthy. Now it’s up to the older generations to pull them up on this behaviour – both literally and metaphorically. Get off the floor, baby Gen Zs, you’re driving everyone insane.
